The globe of light flickered once, then began dancing on Awazuki's palm. It was soon joined by a second, then a third, until an entire cavalcade of lights bounced around in perfect synchronicity like orderly fireflies.
Awazuki raised her arm and smiled as she directed the lights to curl around her wrist as a glowing bracelet. She raised her other hand and made them hop from one bare arm to another, one by one, snuffing them after they had made the leap.
After the last light died, she looked up. "Good enough?"
Hijiri nodded. Despite the summer heat, her dark robes were as voluminous and immaculate as ever. "More than good enough, Miss Awazuki. You've mastered the spell."
The warmth from her inner glow of satisfaction matched that from the sunlight. "So, you'll finally teach me bigger spells?"
Hijiri smiled. "I should have known that's all you're after."
"After three months of nothing but summoning lights? Of course I want to get to the exciting parts!" Still, Awazuki grinned. Though the only spell she had learned so far had only been flashy in the most literal sense, honing it had been a journey.
She stood up straight and stretched herself, then checked to see if the ribbons holding her sleeves up were still secure. Summer had began in earnest some weeks before, and the burgeoning nature and sweet floral scents of the forest were accompanied by blazing heat. She had already discarded all but her hakama and undershirt, figuring it hardly mattered if youkai saw her in a state of undress. Her discarded robes fluttered like butterfly wings on the tree branch she had left them on every time a merciful breeze brushed by. She'd have to make sure to carefully comb them from any pine needles and other gunk afterwards, or face the scalding stares of her grandmother.
Hijiri continued to smile. "When I began my studies, during the first six months I didn't cast a single spell."
"Seriously? How were you going to defend yourself if someone found out and decided you had to die?"
"Believe it or not, that is rarely a pressing concern at a temple."
"Right." Though she had listened to Hijiri's stories about her past and done her best to understand meditation — it turned out she had had the entirely wrong idea and was supposed to be aware of her entire body rather than shut it away — Awazuki still didn't understand Buddhism. "I guess Reishoumiya has been a pretty big departure from that?"
"I'd rather say it's been surprisingly peaceful. The local youkai have been lukewarm to our presence. Ichirin has built a decent rapport with a few of them, but most eye us with certain wariness or else ignore us."
"Guess you haven't met any of the really big troublemakers so far."
"Such as?"
"Oni. They come down from the mountain sometimes." In reality, they had only done so once in living memory, but one time was more than enough. "You're the one expected to deal with them from now on. You did introduce yourself as an oni specialist, after all."
Hijiri smiled sheepishly. "That I did."
"Are you really an oni specialist?"
She had the decency to cough. "A slight exaggeration, perhaps."
"I thought nuns weren't supposed to lie," Awazuki said teasingly, but her heart wasn't in it. It had been seven years since the incident, and she no longer thought about it daily. Somehow, that made the feelings surrounding the memory rawer, more intense.
Hijiri must have noticed the dip in her mood. "I have dealt with them before, that much is true. Thus I know that when you can't gain their confidence by joining them for a drink, the next best thing is challenging one to an arm-wrestling contest."
She had said arm-wrestling, but Awazuki pictured a full-blown wrestling match: Hijiri, with the hem of her robes tucked into her belt, squaring off against a hulking oni. The image made her smile.
Her mirth faded. "Speaking of troublemakers..."
"Ah, yes. I'm afraid I have no news regarding the youkai with wings. Ichirin has been probing her new acquaintances, but they are either ignorant of this particular youkai or else unwilling to speak up."
Awazuki nodded, frowning. She had half expected this response, but it didn't make hearing it any less fun.
Still, perhaps there was a silver lining. No news meant the youkai with wings hadn't attacked anyone else yet, and it also meant she had more time to learn magic with which to destroy them once they did rear their ugly head.
With that in mind, she cleared her brow and focused on Hijiri. "So, it's time for a new spell?"
Hijiri nodded, but before she could actually begin to teach Awazuki, Ichirin, in robes identical to Hijiri's except for the cowl hiding her purple hair, and followed by the massive cloud youkai Unzan as always, rushed over. "Lady Byakuren!"
Hijiri stood up as Ichirin halted before her. "What is it?"
"Uh," Ichirin glanced at Awazuki before continuing. "Nazrin came back with a message from the coast. They desperately need your help." She continued in a hushed tone, so low Awazuki could barely catch it. "It's Murasa."
"I see. I will leave at once."
"Eh?" Awazuki couldn't help but stare as Hijiri dusted off her robes, clearly intent on doing exactly as she had said. "What about my lesson?"
Hijiri turned to flash her another smile. "I'm sorry, Miss Awazuki. I will make it up to you once I return, but every moment I dawdle lives are at risk."
"Oh." Awazuki sighed. With some reluctance, she undid the ribbons holding up her sleeves. "When you will be back?"
"A week from now, perhaps two." Hijiri turned to Ichirin before Awazuki could protest. "I trust you to relay the news to Shou if Nazrin hasn't reached her yet."
"Of course, Lady Byakuren."
Hijiri nodded, then chanted something under her breath. A dim white glow, first barely visible in the sunlight and slowly growing brighter, engulfed her entire body. She stepped forward, and the moment Awazuki blinked, she was far away, barely visible between the trees. Another blink, and not a trace of her remained.
"Woah," said Awazuki without meaning to.
"Amagimi Hijiri's Air Scroll," Ichirin explained, nodding. "Pretty impressive, isn't it?"
She turned her full attention to Awazuki now, and managed what was only a slightly awkward smile. "Since you're here anyway, would you like to join us for tea?"
Awazuki stared back, considering her options. She had never been alone with another youkai besides Hijiri — well, alone was a strong word here, as the massive face of Unzan the nyuudou hovered right behind Ichirin — and though she would scarcely admit it, the prospect unnerved her. Then again, though she had only exchanged a few words with Ichirin in the past, she had come across as friendly and more approachable than Shou, the only other follower of Hijiri's Awazuki had met.
She nodded. "Thanks. I'm parched."
She retrieved her robes from the branch and, placing them over her arm, followed Ichirin the short distance to Hijiri's camp.
The camp stood at an unremarkable clearing, dominated by a large firepit. Various bundles and spare clothes were strewn around, and along with the straw mats laid under a large maple tree and the pails of water and huge pot by the fire, they gave the spot a very lived-in look.
Ichirin was clearly at home; she immediately went for the pails and whistled to herself as she filled the pot and placed it above the fire.
"So," she sat down on one of the logs strategically placed around the fire, Unzan settling down behind her, and gestured at another one. "Have a seat."
Awazuki sat gingerly, placing her unwanted clothes next to her. She gave Ichirin a quick smile, which was met in kind, then tried to come up with something to say. She came up blank.
"Uh," she finally began as the silence stretched on. "Where did Hijiri go, exactly?"
If Ichirin was bothered by Awazuki's lack of formal address towards Hijiri, she didn't show it. "To speak with one of our allies. She's suffered a lot, and she's finding it difficult to... adjust to Lady Byakuren's teachings."
"Right." So, some kind of a murderous lunatic? Fantastic. "She knows some pretty colourful people, huh?"
Ichirin laughed. "You can say that again! I mean, when she first told us she was mentoring a local youkai hunter, I—"
Her words and good mood didn't so much peter out as strike against a stone wall. She gave Awazuki an awkward look. "I mean..."
Awazuki found herself laughing, both at her current expression, and what she imagined had been her expression when Hijiri broke the news. "I can't blame you. It is weird, isn't it?"
Ichirin's shoulders relaxed. "A bit." Her cheer returned as she busied herself with some small containers behind her log. "The tea we have right now isn't the greatest, but hopefully it's good enough."
"I'm sure it's great, Miss, uh, Kumoi..."
At this, Ichirin turned back towards her, bundle of tea in hand, her smile as bright as Awazuki had ever seen it. "Ichirin's fine. No-one's called me Kumoi for ages."
"Okay, Ichirin. And you can call me Awazuki in return if you'd like."
Ichirin leaned forward to check the water. As she pulled back, she exchanged a look with Unzan, still smiling. "Awazuki it is."
Awazuki nodded, mostly to herself. It was the first time she was truly on first-name basis with anyone but her immediate family. To think it was with a youkai...
"So..." Her eyes flitted to Unzan, then back to Ichirin. "How have you been settling down here?"
"Very well, thank you. It was a bit tense at first, but now the local youkai don't mind our presence. I think." Ichirin exchanged another glance with Unzan, then lowered her voice. "Don't tell Lady Byakuren this, but I'm a bit worried. She says my attempts at making friends are going fine, but she doesn't seem to understand how many of them give me the cold shoulder from the start. It's almost like they can smell that I'm a jinyou and resent me for it."
"Jinyou..." Awazuki blinked as she recalled what the term meant. "Wait, you were a human too?"
Ichirin's expression sunk further. She worked on making the tea in silence before straightening her back and finally continuing. "When I befriended Unzan, my friends and family began to fear and avoid me. They called me a demon child, and people I didn't know sometimes threw stones at me. So I stayed away and travelled with Unzan. Then, one day, I woke up and realised I was a youkai, too."
"Oh." Awazuki stared at the fire. "I'm sorry."
"Don't worry, it's fine now. I have a new home, after all, and true friends." Ichirin smiled at Unzan. "Anyway, that's why I started following Lady Byakuren. If she hopes to create a world where humans and youkai can live together in peace, I want to be there and help her in any way I can."
Awazuki stared. There was nothing but sincerity on Ichirin's face.
"I hope you succeed," she said mildly. She felt the cause hopeless: why would humans ever willingly cavort with their predators?
Then again, she thought darkly as Ichirin removed the kettle from the fire, here I am, a lone human, about to have tea with a youkai. Unless...
"How long did you travel with Unzan before you became a youkai?" she asked, careful to keep her tone as neutral as possible.
"Oh..." Ichirin was too busy with the tea to turn and look at her. "Over a decade. And it only happened after I stopped spending time with other humans altogether."
"Right." It wasn't exactly reassuring, any more than Hijiri's tale had been, but she could live with it. She accepted the earthenware cup Ichirin offered, and breathed in the steam. It had a sharp, pungent odour. Ichirin hadn't been kidding when she said it wasn't the greatest of teas.
Ichirin settled back down and smiled at her again. Even knowing she had once been a human, Awazuki found it curious how relaxed she felt. Even with Hijiri, there was always a certain edge, a lingering doubt that kept her ready to strike back and flee should it come to it. If more youkai were like Ichirin...
She took a sip of the tea. She then immediately spat it out.
Maybe if more youkai were like Ichirin, they'd use poison rather than claws and fangs to kill.
To her credit, Ichirin was concerned. "What's wrong?" She gave her cup a suspicious sniff, then took the most minute of sips. Her face turned an interesting shade of green.
Awazuki was busy coughing out the last drops of the noxious liquid behind her log when someone began to titter somewhere above. With watering eyes, she turned towards the treetops.
On the highest branch of the big maple tree sat a little girl. Her short black hair was matted and full of twigs and grass, and the plain white tunic she wore was beyond filthy. Still, beneath the grime, she exuded confidence and good health. A pair of long white ears sat atop her head, and her bright red eyes, visible even at the distance due to the way they gleamed in the sunlight, were fixed on Awazuki and Ichirin, as was her devious grin.
Ichirin muttered something that sounded like a swear under her breath. "Tewi..."
When Awazuki shot her a questioning glance, she continued. "A local youkai. We've been trying to get along with her, but..." she sighed. "No matter what, she does as she pleases." She turned to glare venom at Tewi. "I hope you stole the real tea instead of throwing it away, because bringing it back straight away is the only way you can keep me from throttling you."
Tewi responded to the threat with more giggling. She crouched up on the branch, then carelessly manoeuvred herself onto a lower one. "Don't mind me. I just came to take a look at the traitor." With that, she trained her eyes on Awazuki.
Awazuki bounced to her feet. First the revolting tea, and now insults? "I'd keep your mouth shut, youkai. Oath or no oath, I'll kick your ass if need be."
Tewi rolled her eyes. "And make an enemy of your only potential allies? I don't think so. Let's face it, the humans will never take you back, so you'd better play nice with us." Her smile widened, revealing an alarming set of teeth that belonged neither in a human nor rabbit mouth.
"Unzan," Ichirin said. The nyuudou rose threateningly upwards.
Tewi paid him no mind: she was still entirely focused on Awazuki. "You made the right choice, traitor." Her tone was almost pleasant. "All the humans will be gone as soon as the barrier breaks."
Awazuki blinked, an unexpected trill of fear running up her spine. "The what?"
Tewi tittered again, like a carefree child. "This is why your kind should write things down."
Ichirin too had gotten up. "Tewi, exactly what—"
But Tewi had evidently lost interest in the discussion. With a cheerful wave, she bounced back onto the upper branch, then leapt on a another branch away from Awazuki's view. Unzan descended back to ground level, looking solemn.
Ichirin crouched to pick up the cup she had dropped. "Please don't take what she said to heart. She's a mean-spirited little git, that's all. I'll never understand why the other youkai here listen to her."
"Never mind that now. What's the barrier she spoke of?"
Ichirin discarded the cup behind the log, her brow furrowing. "I wish I knew. No-one else has mentioned it, so maybe it's something she made up on the spot. I should have some actual tea here somewhere, if you still want some."
"It's fine." Awazuki helped herself to a bit of hot water to wipe out the taste of Tewi's gunk, then handed her cup back to Ichirin. "I need to get back home and ask Grandmother some questions." Even if the odds Tewi wasn't making it all up from whole cloth were one to a hundred, she had to be sure.
She swiped her robes back on and was already half gone from the clearing when she remembered her manners and turned. "Thanks for your hospitality!"
Ichirin straightened her back and waved at her. Unzan did, too, a sudden, enormous hand emerging from the fluffy pink clouds. "Come back whenever you want!"
Awazuki blazed down the trail, her mind aflame. The more she thought about it, the more she began to believe Tewi had spoken of something real. She racked her brain for any potential barriers as she rushed through the village, but came up as blank as she had when Tewi had first brought it up.
She shook her head as she hurried past the jizou and up the path. Grandmother would know. If there really was a barrier somewhere nearby, no matter how ancient, she would know.
She had only just made it to the foot of the stone steps to the shrine when Meizuki collided with her, rushing down so fast she was almost falling. They collapsed on the ground.
"Ugh!" Awazuki took a second to make sure she had no broken bones before turning towards her sister, groaning but mercifully unharmed. "What are you doing? You should be resting."
Meizuki was paler than ever, with red splotches all over her usually pristine skin. Her hair, usually finely combed and let loose when not youkai-hunting, was tangled and stuck out on all sides. "It's..." she stammered, "It's..."
Awazuki helped her to her feet and held her steady. "Okay, deep breaths."
Meizuki collected herself for a moment, closing her eyes and breathing in and out. Then, her eyes shot back open, round and staring like an owl's. "It's Grandmother! She was fetching water from the well, and..."
Awazuki felt a knot in her stomach. "She fell in?"
"No!" Meizuki lowered her head, her fingers digging through Awazuki's sleeves and into the flesh of her upper arms. "But she collapsed, and won't answer, and I can't move her inside on my own and—"
Awazuki let Meizuki go on, her mind reeling. Grandmother was old, but she had always been in such good health that Awazuki had never thought she'd fall into decline. Had nursing Meizuki really taken such a toll on her, or was it simply her time?
She shook herself. No. It wasn't her time. Not yet.
She focused on Meizuki, still horror-stricken, but calmer. "We can carry her together. Let's go!"
Meizuki held onto her wrist the entire way back, out of breath but determined to keep up with Awazuki. Awazuki's own thoughts were already at whatever would await her at the shrine, all else forgotten.